My New Martha Stewart Craft Cabinet {A Studio Tour}

Happy Monday, friends!  Last week was pretty uneventful due to the fact that I had a nasty cold, which I am still trying to kick.  I'm feeling about 85% better and have another crazy week ahead, I will make up the Birthday/Shopiversary Celebration... we'll have a Belated Celebration, how does that sound?

Anyway, early last week, before this cold knocked me on my butt, my Mother-in-Law came into town to fit my little chicks for their flower girl dresses, which she is making for an upcoming family wedding.  With her, she brought a super awesome Martha Stewart Three-Drawer Flat File Craft Cabinet that she found at a Home Depot near her in GA.  She had previously purchased an identical cabinet and the coordinating hutch on clearance at another store and when she found a second one, she called to ask if I wanted her to pick it up for my sewing room... Of course I wanted it!  PLUS, this one was on clearance, too!! Seriously, at 50% off, who wouldn't buy it?!

Anywho, the cabinet sat in my living room until Saturday evening, mostly because I didn't have the energy to even think about helping my husband haul it up the stairs.  When we finally got around to moving it, it was quite a sight... I'll tell you that much.  With the drawers out of the cabinet we ended up flipping it end over end, up the stairs.  Hubby had to remove the door from my sewing room so that we could shimmy the cabinet in.  The good news is: 1- I didn't break hubby's hand when I smooshed it between the cabinet and the wall in the stairway, and  2- the cabinet fit through the door! Hooray!

{Welcome to my Studio}

There is my Martha Stewart Cabinet with my sewing machine on it.  It's insane how much I can store in the drawers, two of which have dividers.  I can fit so much in there that it eliminated the need for the wire shelf in the right of the photo... though, I'm sure I'll find another use for it.  Out of the shot, to the left, is my large wire shelf that holds the bolts of fabric and interfacings.

I love my folding cutting table because it really saves space and I can easily prop up one end for cutting orders, etc, then fold it right back down!

In the closet I have a dresser which holds embroidery blanks and office supplies, along with my wireless printer; I usually have the closet door open with my shoe divider-turned-supply-storage hanging on the inside.  The wire shelf behind my bolts of laminated cotton is from my girls' closet makeover which I have yet to post... Note to self: post the Girls' room re-do!

This is my little shipping center/office,  I keep everything I need to package and ship orders, as well as my folders for expenses, receipts, invoices, etc.  I also have a bin of to-sew/ in-progress projects.  Directly above it is my inspiration cork board wall.  This sits directly to the right of the closet.

Finally, a closer look at my new cabinet, I have scraps and extra embroidery stabilizer in these bins underneath, there is actually enough room behind these bins for another row, if I need them!  I'm considering this tractor seat stool, in green or white, to sit on:

Source: walmart.com via Melissa on Pinterest

My studio has evolved quite a bit as my little business has grown, here is the first Studio Tour I posted a little over a year ago.  It has had slight changes in the past year, I moved out the dresser, added a small writing desk, removed that and replaced with my new Martha Stewart Craft Cabinet.  I think this arrangement will stick for the long-term.  I am loving the light, the flow, and the space in here!

Do you have a favorite piece of furniture?  Do you have any tips on how to make a small room "work" larger?

XxOo~ Melissa

*NOTE: I am in no way affiliated with Home Depot or Martha Stewart Living, I just really love this piece of furniture and was happy to have found it for such a great deal at a Home Depot store!

My SoChick Studio Tour

I love seeing creative spaces, I've been known to get lost in Pinterest while browsing the spaces of others... and I really love Studio Tours!

 I'll admit that when I officially started my business I had taken over our dining room which meant: no more dinners at the table, always looking at work, always keeping the kids and pets away from everything... Sigh, something had to give!

 We own a Three Bedroom Townhouse and have two little chicks... not a lot of room to work with.  One day the light bulb in my brain clicked, and once Natalie was old enough, we moved the girls together into one room.  I love my family for being so supportive of my work-from-home business!

You may have caught a few glimpses of my Studio here and here... with some re-arranging over time, I have come up with a system that really works for both my creativity and productivity.... So, without further adieu here's my So Chick! Home Studio Tour:

I love the Limonada green in this room. (Valspar paint from LOWES)

The girls' dresser doesn't fit in their room, which is fine with me because it allows for extra 'counter space' in the Studio.  I typically put prepped and ready to sew items on it.. I also keep notions available, ribbon and such, on a cute little tray which I talked about, here. On the other side of the dresser I have a wire rack where I keep my home dec weight fabrics and canvas, on top you can see my interfacing and interlinings.  I keep a bin with all of my scrap interfacings so that I have small pieces available as needed... I plan on organizing into ziploc baggies by type, that would really help with productivity as I wouldn't have to dig around, ha!  I also really like my rolling bin for fabric, easy to move around and I keep it organized by color.

Moving on...

I currently use a folding table for cutting and sewing.  This is the same table I use for craft fairs and my farmer's market.... when I find a decent table at a good price, I'll upgrade, for now this works just fine.

I love working by the window, which overlooks our backyard.

This calendar is a new addition, I picked it up in GA at a JoAnn store for 50% off... It's a framed piece of glass with a calendar painted on the back, you write(and wipe *wink*) on the front.  I used my hot glue gun to stick some white eyelet fabric (that I ruffled) to the back of the frame... it helps the writing to show up and  looks way pretty & shabby chic.

I don't actually sit at this little desk, but I keep all of my files here.  I also try to organize my monthly sales and receipts here... which makes it super easy to keep up with the books! (Which helps come tax time, plus it's also nice to see that you are actually making money, woot!)

This "Bee Sweet" coloring page hangs above my desk and was taped to the wall here for the longest time!  When I was pregnant with Natalie we were unsure of gender (she never cooperated at the Ultrasound), so we stayed neutral with colors... going with a bumble-bee theme for her room.  She really was a busy bee, always moving in my belly, still always on the go, and Trista colored this page for "baby Bee" and taped it to the wall...  Such a sweet Big Sis! I don't know that I'll ever take it down. :-)

I didn't have anywhere else to put the glider from when this room was Natalie's nursery, but that's okay, I love having it in here, and I love when Trista sits in it to read a book while I work, I'll also rock Natalie in it from time to time ♥ .   

You can also see my hanging shoe organizer that I've put on the back of the closet door... this holds everything from embroidery stabilizer, spray adhesive, rolls of vinyl, to rulers and piping cordage... Way handy!  In the closet, which I didn't photograph, I have a tall 5 drawer dresser that holds my embroidery thread cases, the embroidery unit for my machine and more fabric, of course *wink*.

Thanks for taking a look at my SoChick Studio! I love showing you where I work and having you 'visit'!

XxOo~Melissa